The Best TCL TVs Of 2022: Great Value with Killer Performance

In this guide, we’re going to look at the Best TCL TVs you can buy in 2022. We made this list based on our own opinion, research, and customer reviews. We’ve considered their quality, features, and values when narrowing down the best choices possible.

If you want more information and updated pricing on the products mentioned, be sure to check the links in each product we mentioned.

So, here are the Top 3 Best TCL TVs Of 2022.

Best TCL TVs You Can Buy in 2022

#1. TCL 6 Series/R646 2021 QLED

REASONS TO BUY

+Mini LED backlight +Very affordable

REASONS TO AVOID

-No HDMI 2.1

The TCL 6 Series/R646 2021 QLED is the best TCL TV we’ve tested. It’s an impressive TV, with a new Mini LED backlight that provides a brighter picture and finer control of the local dimming zones. It delivers outstanding contrast, with one of the best contrast ratios with local dimming that we’ve ever tested.

However, the local dimming isn’t as good at improving the picture quality in real content as other TVs. Luckily, it’s incredibly bright, so there’s no need to worry about visibility, even in a bright room, and HDR content stands out and looks close to how the content creator intended. It’s excellent for gaming, with low input lag, a great response time, and support for variable refresh rate technology.

Unlike most TCL TVs, it runs the Google TV smart platform, which is more polished than Roku, but some people might find it harder to use. It has a huge selection of apps, so you’re sure to find your favorite streaming service, and the remote has a built-in mic for voice control.

Sadly, it can’t display 480p content properly, so it’s not ideal for watching DVDs. It also has a VA panel with narrow viewing angles, so the image looks washed out from the sides, and it’s not a good choice if you have a wide seating area. Despite its flaws, it’s an impressive TV overall.

#2. TCL 5 Series/S546 2021 QLED

REASONS TO BUY

+QLED panel / +Roku TV platform

REASONS TO AVOID

-No HDR10+ / -Not that bright

The TCL 5 Series/S546 2021 QLED is the best TCL TV we’ve tested in the budget category. Although TCL is mainly a budget-friendly brand, this one offers the best value for a low cost, as the higher-end TCL 6 Series/R646 2021 QLED is competitively priced with high-end TVs from other brands.

The S546 is part of the 2021 lineup, and like the other models, it features Google TV instead of Roku TV. Although differences in the smart platform are subjective, Google tends to have a wider selection of apps available to download, so you know you won’t need to use an external streaming device to watch your favorite content. It’s a straightforward TV with good picture quality, and it performs well both in dark and bright rooms.

Unfortunately, there are some issues with its picture quality as it has terrible out-of-the-box accuracy, which results in a red tint that looks distracting. It has the same upscaling issues as the higher-end model, so it’s not good for watching DVDs.

However, if you want to use it for gaming, you should be happy to know it has variable refresh rate support to reduce screen tearing, but it’s limited to a 60Hz panel and HDMI 2.0 bandwidth, so you can’t use it for high-frame-rate gaming. However, we expect this for a budget model, and it’s still one of the best TCL TVs we’ve tested.

#3. TCL 4 Series 2020

REASONS TO BUY

+So cheap! / +Roku TV

REASONS TO AVOID

-No QLED-Lacks advanced specs

The best TCL 4k TV that you can get in a small size is the TCL 43S435. It’s an entry-level 2020 model, and even though you won’t get many of the same features or performance as the higher-end TVs, it’s still a decent choice as a secondary TV in a small room. It has a VA panel with an outstanding contrast ratio, and it displays deep blacks.

It doesn’t have a local dimming feature, and its black uniformity is okay, which may vary between units. It comes with the same built-in Roku TV as the higher-end models, although there’s a TCL 4 Series/S434 Android 2020 variant that has Android TV instead. It doesn’t have any trouble upscaling lower-resolution content, like DVDs, and displays native 4k content perfectly.

Unfortunately, it’s best to avoid placing it in a well-lit room because it doesn’t get bright enough to combat glare, and the reflection handling is only decent. Fast-moving content may look blurry due to the slow response time, and the backlight flickers at 120Hz at low levels, which causes image duplication.

On the upside, it removes judder from native 24p sources and has excellent out-of-the-box color accuracy. It has narrow viewing angles, but if you want something with an IPS panel instead, the newer TCL 4 Series/S446 2021 is a good alternative. Overall, this is the best TCL TV that you can get in a small size.